Designing a curriculum for communication skills training from a theory and evidence-based perspective

Abstract

ObjectiveBecause quality health care delivery requires effective clinician–patient communication, successful training of health professionals requires communication skill curricula of the highest quality. Two approaches for developing medical communication curricula are a consensus approach and a theory driven approach. We propose a theory-driven, communication function framework for identifying important communication skills, one that is focused on the key goals and outcomes that need to be accomplished in clinical encounters. We discuss 7 communication functions important to medical encounters and the types of skills needed to accomplish each. DiscussionThe functional approach has important pedagogical implications including the importance of distinguishing the performance of a behavior (capacity) from the outcome of that behavior in context (effectiveness) and the recognition that what counts as effective communication depends on perspective (e.g., observer, patient). ConclusionConsensus and theory-driven approaches to medical communication curricula are not necessarily contradictory and can be integrated to further enhance ongoing development and improvements in medical communication education. Practice implicationsA functional approach should resonate with practicing clinicians and continuing education initiatives in that it is embraces the notion that competent communication is situation-specific as clinicians creatively use communicative skills to accomplish the key goals of the encounter.